My Little Halo: Survival is Magic
by dragoonian
Summary: Not one of my better titles. When the Covenant stumble across a planet that never existed. Its up to a lone Spartan to save the day. Who knew that it would lead him all the way to Master Chiefs alleged final adventure. OC's accepted Its T but halo so foul language possible.
1. Chapter 1

**I'll be taking oc's for all sides, and the form will be after the intro.**

* * *

"You know they gave me a choice?" Cortana says to Master Chief, a Spartan. The saviors of Humanity, men and women who wore suits of armor that, along with their training, made them titans on the battlefield. "I could chose any Spartan I wanted. I observed all of you as you developed into the Spartans we needed you to be. But I chose you, above all others. Wanna know why? Because you had something the others didn't. Luck. Let me tell you Chief, that luck got you out of a LOT of sticky situations. It also got you some intersting allies. To bad you'll never remember them. I guess we have time until someone finds us. Well, you don't really have a choice in the matter either, seeing as you're in cryo. It began shortly after the fall of Reach. Who knew that ponies could be as lethal as you.

* * *

"Spartan BRNY. You are wanted on the bridge immediatly." The intercom system of the UNSC ship, Say My Name, blares into the lone Spartans room. A decently tall man, for a Spartan, about 6 feet even without armor on, awakens at the sound of the intercom. His dirty blond hait, short cut of course, is slightly shaggey from sleep. He rubs his blue-green eyes as he sits up.

"In armor or no?" he asks the AI.

"In armor. New planet showed up out of nowhere and you are wanted down there. The Covenant are also in orbit so be prepared. Which loadout do you want for the mission?"

"Can I see the planet?"

"Of couse." The AI projects the image of an Earth sized planet, very lush in the equitorial region, and the top and bottom eigths of the plannet were frozen over. The planet apeared to have one super continent, which was very visably inhabited, due to the massive citties that he could see.

"And where am I landing?" He asks the AI.

"At the castle city shown here." The AI replies, zooming the image in on a rather large city similar to very old Earthen palace fortressess. "Take note that there are a lot of equin animals on the planet so it is safe to assume that they are the dominant species."

"Roger that. Just give me my usual scouting loadout." The Spartan replies to the AI. He then walks over to a contraption near the door out of his room and steps into it. Not even 10 seconds later he is already almost fully armored up with weapons ready for him. He was lucky enough to get custom colored, standard issue Spartan armor, dark green with pink accents. On each shoulder and his chest was his identifying emblem, a black hawk on a green shield, on a crimson shield. His visor was also special, in the fact that it was green like his armor.

"So what's the situation captain?"

"Well Spartan, the Covvies found a new planet. And it seems as the did so on accident. We were ordered out here when the planets gravity apeared out of nowhere. Now the Covvies are examining the planet and we don't know why. That is what we are sending you down for. Find out what they are after, then give them hell."

"With pleasure sir."

"Thats why I like you kiddo.". The captain replies to the Spartan before he charges off to a Pelican drop ship. After he arrives a few minutes later, the ship takes off anf heads for the planet. Meanwhile, above them, one of the massive UNSC MAC gun fires at the Covenant ship in orbit of the planet, ripping a hole in its shields with a unheard but certainly felt bang.

'Well this is new.' The Spartan thinks to himself as he notices a rather large pink shield surrounding the city he was to land near.

And now for the oc form.

Allegiance(Covenant, UNSC, Equestria.)(No more spartan)(no more pony):  
Name(Designation for UNSC as well):  
Species:  
Gender:  
Rank(UNSC and Covenant only.):  
Appearance:  
Special Talent(Equestria only):  
Fighting style:

And now my oc.

Allegiance:UNSC  
Name: Rex, Designation BRNY  
Species: Human  
Gender:Male  
Rank:Petty Officer First Class.  
Appearance: Has short cut dirty blond hair, white skin, blue-green eyes. His Spartan Armor is dark green pink accents and has a black falcon on a green shield on a crimson shield, and his helmet has a green visor.  
Fighting style: He is a ranged specialist and is thus good ar scouting, but in CQC, he is moving at top speed jumping from walls to get the best shot, rather quickly despit his armor.


	2. Lesson 1: Don't fck with ponies

**OK SWITCHING TO FIRST PERSON LIMITED.**

* * *

'I thought this planet didn't have high tech. How the hell do they have a force-field like that, especially one of that size." I think to myself. "Any other intel I need?" I ask the Say My Names AI.

"Well, the other Spartans that were on the ship have landed in their respective LZs. Also that you're getting your own AI, with everything already downloaded as needed. Meet Midnight Thunder." As he says this, my H.U.D. wavers and changes colors from the traditional blue to a crimson color.

"Nice to meet you. Don't die out there." Midnight, definitely male, jokes, I think.

"Nice to meet you to. What exactly are you?" I ask

"Midnight Thunder, at your service. Third generation smart AI, specialization with tactics and all computer systems."

"So what's the plan Midnight?"

"Well, it seems that nothing the covenant has been unable to break the shields around the city, but they have managed to get some troops through the field. The Battle Net is also on about some sort of resistance coming from the natives."

"Sounds like fun."

"OK Rex, we're landing now. I'm setting you down on a mountain railway that seems to lead into the city." The pilot says to me as he hovers the Pelican and opens the back. I grab my DMR and Magnum, and jump out onto the railway.

"Where to?" I ask Midnight.

"Waypoint up." He replies as a red triangle appears in my vision. It looks like it is almost at the barrier to the city.

'Let's go then.' I think to myself before starting along the tracks. They lead through caves, none of which have covvies in them, thank goodness. As soon as I exit the cave, I hear a train whistle, look back, and see a train, strait from the childrens cartoons back on earth in design. I duck to the edge of the tracks and hide behind some rocks The train seems to bounce when it passes by, weird. After it passes by, I get back out of cover and continue along the tracks.

* * *

"Hold up compadre." Midnight says to me. "Covvies on radar, along with unknowns."

"I see em. Thanks." I reply. I double check my radar and see a few red dots on the edge. I turn so they exactly in front of me, enter the scope of my DMR, and look for them. I see three grunts, smallish reptilian bipeds, with armor that acts as gas tank for the fumes they breath. Some of them get to be as tall as humans, and much bulkier, but are about half as tall as us Spartans. I use the reticule that my H.U.D. gives to line up my shot with one of the grunts. I am far away enough for the reticule to remain unchanged, but I am one of the best snipers the UNSC has. I line up the reticule so that the head of the grunt is in the pinpoint center, and pull the trigger. The grunts head recoils back as it falls down dead. I quickly move the reticule to overlay the second grunts head, pull the trigger, and nick its head, still killing it. I repeat the process on the third grunt and get another bulls-eye.

"Nice shooting." Midnight compliments me.

"Thanks." I look for the waypoint and notice that it was were the grunts were basically standing on it. I check my radar and it's clear on all sides. I sprint to the waypoint and come face to face with the barrier that was blocking all weapons. "What is it?" I ask, observing the pink field, with a hole in the side.

"It seems to be a metaphysical barrier with no technological origin, rather a biological generator."

"Interesting." I reply. I then hear a loud horn and look toward where it came from. I see the train from before as it passes through the field and into the city. I turn back to the hole that was in it, and notice that it is beginning to close, so I charge through it just in time for it to seal behind me. "What's the next objective?" I ask Midnight.

"Give 'em hell."

"With pleasure. Where is the largest concentration of the covvies?"

"At the giant castle in the center of the city. Marking the way now." Midnight replies, throwing up a red triangle at a street entrance. I head through it, checking my radar on occasion so I don't get caught off guard by stray covvies. After a few waypoints, I am almost at the entrance to the inner city. Then I hear someone screaming.

"HELP! HELP ME! SOMEPONY, ANYPONY, HELP!" The voice, female, screams. I check my radar to see where it is coming from and I see a yellow dot and a red dot nearby. I run to where the sound is coming from and see two things. The first is a covvie skirmisher commando, a reptilian species in the covenant that sometimes show avian feathers, closing in on an equine with a horn on its head. The unicorn is rose red with a dark green mane and tail. It seems that neither of them have noticed me, so I take aim at the skirmisher, and fire. At that very moment, another equine, as large as the skirmisher, and blood red with an orange mane and tail. My shot misses so I put my DMR on my back, pull out my magnum, and charge at the skirmisher. It shoves the other equine off of it just in time for me to pistol whip it upside the head, knocking it back into a wall. It gets up, looks at the large equine and then me, and sprints away in the direction of the castle. The blood red equine turns to me and prepares to charge.

"Hey, I'm on your side." I say to it. It gets up from charging stance.

"Who are you?" He asks.

"I'm a human." I reply. "Part of the UNSC. And what you just saw, was part of the Covenant. An alien allegiance determined to exterminate all other forms of life. What are you?"

"I'm a earth pony, and that is my sister, a unicorn."

"Thank you for helping save me. My name is Rose Thorn, welcome to Canterlot."

"Well, I'm headed for the castle. It's where the most covvies are. I would suggest you two head to safety."

"The castle is the safest place in all of Equestria. All three of the princesses, the Elements of Harmony, and the Royal Guard are there."

"Then I'll escort you there. Stay behind me." I order them. "This is Spartan BRNY to the Say My Name. I have some new intel for you all."

"What is it Rex?" The captain replies to me.

"The natives are ponies. They speak near perfect English, and some can hold themselves one on one against the covvies. I have two under my escort."

"Thank you Rex. Now get back to work."

"Roger that captain." I reply to him, then to Midnight. "I need a way to the castle that takes us around the covvies."

"Just give me a sec."

"OK." I reply. "So then ponies, what do I need to know about this planet?"

"Well," Rose starts. "You are in the country of Equestria, current home of the ponies. There are three subspecies of pony, earth pony, unicorn, and pegasus. We are ruled by two of the princesses, Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. They raise and lower the sun and moon respectively. We are a peaceful nation, but with the Elements of Harmony, we can defend ourselves from nearly anything."

"Got it. Just follow the waypoints and you shouldn't run into any covvies."

"Thank you Midnight."

* * *

"So this is the castle." I observe. True to his words, Midnight got me to the castle without running into any of the covvies. We get to the gate, and Rose knocks on it with her hoof. A slide in the door opens and a ponies head looks out, closes the slide, and opens the door. We go in and the pony closes the door behind us. A second later, 5 ponies in a sort of golden armor reminiscent of ancient Roman armor have spears pointed at me. "I'm on your side." I say, raising my hands.

"It's true." Rose tells them. "He helped my brother and I get here, and defended us from the other aliens."

The guards raise their spears and one of them says to me. "The princesses will want to see you. Come with me."

"Lead the way." I reply. He goes ahead of me and I notice that he has a pair of wings folded against his sides. "Well isn't this just a fairy tail world." I comment to Midnight.

"Ain't that the truth." He replies. After a few minutes of wandering through the halls of the castle and the occasional rumble from outside, the pegasus leads me to a giant doorway. He opens it and ushers me inside, where I see two ponies nearly as large as I am. They both have a pair of wings and a horn, but one is pure white with a 4 colored mane and tail and the other, shorter one, is a deep shade of blue with a mane and tail that seem to be made of the night sky.

"So you must be the one who protected some of my little ponies." The tall one says to me. "Thank you for doing so. I would go further but it seems that those other, more hostile creatures have been assaulting my city. We have been doing what we can to stop them but we may not be able to hold out for much longer. The royal guard are fighting bravely but we are technologically outmatched. Would you be able to help them hold off the aliens until my pupil arrives to help?"

"It would be my pleasure." I reply.

"No need princess." A new voice shouts as the doors burst open behind me to reveal 6 new ponies and a small reptilian biped., two pegasi, two unicorns, and two normal ponies. When they see me, they turn hostile and look like they are going to attack me.

"Relax Twilight. This alien is friendly. He saved two ponies today and is going to help us do more." The tall one says to one of the new ponies.

"If you say so prince..."One of the unicorns, lavender coat with a deep purple mane and tail with a blue and pink streak in them starts before one of the normal ponies, this one pure pink with magenta for the main and tail dashes towards me with unparallelled speed.

"If the princess says you're OK then you're a friend of mine!" She shouts when she reaches me, extending a hoof. I reach down to shake it and she shakes my hand back very rapidly.

"Nice to meet you to." I reply. Next is the other normal pony, with an orange coat, blond main and tail done up in a ponytail, and wearing a cowboy hat.

"Howdy pardner. Name's Applejack. Pleasure making your acquaintance."

"So, what are you?" One of the pegasus asks me. This one with a cyan coat and a rainbow mane and tail.

"I am a human, and a member of the UNSC. We are fighting against the covenant, the aliens outside who want to destroy all life in the universe as part of their religion."

"Do we have to fight. I don't want to fight." The other pegasus says shyly. This one with a yellow coat and a pink mane and tail.

"There is always going to be wounded in war, and the wounded need healing." I reply to her. "And with luck, the war will be over soon."

"Darling, who chose your outfits colors? The contrast rather well." The last pony, a unicorn compliments me. This one has a white coat with a purple mane and tail.

"I did. Actually, they are family colors, as is the crest."

"Well my little ponies, now that introductions are done, how about you go get the Elements and we can end this conflict for the time." The tall princess says.

"Agreed." I reply to her. "What exactly are they?"

"They are the oldest and most powerful of magics found on our fair planet. These six ponies are the only ones who can use them as of now."

"Roger that."

"That explains the massive power source I detected." Midnight buts in. "Marking it with a waypoint, and marking all equine life signatures as friendlies."

"WHO WAS THAT?!" The pink one exclaims.

"That was my AI. He helps me with missions."

"OH BOY! Another friend!" She replies. I am very tempted to face palm at that but I don't.

"Let's go kick some covvie ass!" I shout, the ponies rearing up as I do so. We all charge out, myself at the head, with the rainbow pegasus keeping pace with me. As I we burst into the courtyard of the castle, I see a squad of covvies coming out from behind a corner. This one had two elites, half a dozen jackles with arm shields, and 20 grunts. "We need to take out the taller ones first. The smaller ones will usually panic after that, leaving the ones with shields to deal with." I tell the ponies.

"Pinkie Pie, you ready?" Twilight asks the pink one.

"You betcha!" she replies, and gets slightly behind Twilight, standing on two legs, puts on hoof under her neck, and the other one grabs Twilight's tail. Pinkie Pie then rapidly turns Twilight's tail, and rapid beams of energy shoot out of her horn, knocking back several of the grunts and jackles, and even staggering one of the elites. The rainbow pegasus dashes at the covvies, easily dodging their plasma rounds, and spins around them at a very high speed, creating a rainbow colored twister. The other unicorn has a light blue aura around her horn, and shortly after, several large gemstones burst out of the ground, and are launched at high velocity at the covvies, killing and injuring several of them. I take aim at one of the elites with my DMR and send bullets into its head as fast as I can. In less than 5 minutes, the covvies are either dead of fleeing. I look back to the ponies and see the looks of horror on their faces.

"First kills?" I ask them. They all nod their heads. "I wish I could say that it gets better, but it doesn't. But it is necessary in order for the rest of our races to survive. You either learn to deal with it, or you break down. The covvies, they show no mercy. They glass planets that they defeat. All life gone in less than 24 hours if they have a large enough fleet."

"You're joking right?" Pinkie asks me with a worried tone.

"I wish I was. Right now, we need to get those Elements that the princess was talking about." I reply, starting back off in the direction of the waypoint. We manage to get there with minimal interference. A stray grunt or two who take off in the other direction when they see me. After a few minutes, we reach the waypoint, which is at a pair of large doors. I push them open to reveal a hallway with stained glass for each window, and at the end is a door with eight lines leading to the edges and corners from a hole in the center. When we get there, Twilight puts her horn in the hole and it glows with magic. The door splits open, revealing a chest. She opens it with her magic, levitates out five gold necklaces with cut gems and a gold tiara with a large cut gem.

"You may want to stand back." She says to me. "This can get intense."

"I'm sure I can handle it." I reply. She nods and then gives each of her friends one of the necklaces and puts the tiara on her head. They all close their eyes at the same time and the gems begin to glow. They raise into the air, forming a circle around Twilight. When they stop rising, they open their eyes, all pure white, and loose a blast of energy that decimates my shields. I run to the door to look outside and slam the doors open. Outside, every single covenant within the pink barrier has been turned to stone.

"Damn." Is my only word in reaction.

"Damn is right." Midnight agrees.


	3. Practice Practice Practice

"What in the name of all things good was that?" I ask the ponies who just turned a small covenant invasion force into stone statues.

"That was the power of the Elements of Harmony." Twilight replies to me.

"Damn. Let's get back to the princess so we can discuss what comes next."

"So then Human, would you tell me what you know about the covenant?" The taller princess asks me.

"Sure." I reply. "The covenant is an a militaristic religious movement composed of multiple aliens races whose goal, to our knowledge, is to exterminate all life in the universe that doesn't agree to their religion. They show no mercy and are not very diplomatic. They are also very technologically advanced, even compared to us humans."

"Rex, come in, Rex." The captain calls to me.

"Yes captain?"

"Reach has fallen, and a very important AI was sent from reach to the Pillar of Autumn, which recently sent out a distress call and WE are the closest according to ONI. We are sending a Pelican to pick you up. Eta 20 minutes."

"Roger that captain."

"What was that?" The princess asks me.

"My superior is calling me back to our ship. I leave in 20 minutes."

"My faithful student." The princess says to Twilight. "I want you and your friends to go with the Human. According to him, these aliens will not stop unless they are defeated. Take the Elements with you. I can cloak the planet again after you leave."

"Sister." The shorter princess interrupts. "Some of the other ponies want to go with the human as well."

"Very well." She replies. "Human, I leave these ponies in your care as your responsibility."

"I will guard them with my life." I reply.

"Good. Now, we wait."

* * *

"Captain." I radio to him.

"Yes Rex?"

"Some of the natives wish to help us, and they have a powerful weapon of sorts that was able to petrify the entire covvie force in the city."

"Well that sounds helpful."

"They will all need armor and I volunteer to train them on the way to the Pillar of Autumn."

"As you wish Spartan, but I will also have the other two Spartans assist in the training."

"Roger that sir. Looks like the Pelican is here. Be up there soon." I reply as the Pelican lands in front of the castle, in the courtyard. I walk to it, get in, turn around, and see a dozen ponies get in the back of the Pelican with me. "So I take it that all of you are here to fight with me against the Covenant?" I ask them. They all nod in response. "Just be warned, you will have to kill, a lot. One or two of you may be medics for our little squad, but almost all of you will have to kill in some which way or form. I will also be your superior, so you will have to follow my every order to the letter. Leave now if you think you're not prepared for this." None of them move a muscle. "Good. Pilot, we're ready to go." The Pelican takes off and in a matter of minutes we have breach the atmosphere. I see two other Pelicans flying back up, which must contain the other Spartans. I look to the ponies and see them in awe at the fact that we are outside of their atmosphere.

"Amazing." Twilight observes.

"Wait till you see our ship." I say to her, causing her to look at me with curiosity. Now to the rest of the ponies, I say. "OK ponies. We are landing on our ship in a few minutes. You will have to be sent through hazmat, just in case you have any diseases that humans can get that you are immune to. After that, I'll lead you to where you will be staying while on-board this ship. Shortly after, we will get you all fitted for armor. Once that is done, training until we reach our next destination. Also, the entire ship is inhabited by humans like me, and to them, you are brand spanking new, so expect some weird looks, especially you unicorns and pegasi, since you are from ancient mythology." They simply stare at me. "Good."

* * *

"OK ponies, time for armor fitting." I tell them after they have all been declared clear of diseases. We are in the fitting room that is used for Spartans when their armor is shot. In total, there are 5 pegasi, 3 unicorns, and 4 of the normal ponies. "Praxus." I say, calling the shipboard AI.

"Yes Rex?"

"6 of the ponies have special jewels that hold a lot of power. I was thinking that they could maybe power their armor."

"Roger that Rex. Their armor should be ready before we reach the Pillar of Autumn."

"That's good. OK ponies, follow me. We're going to the Forge room for training."

"Attention crew." Praxus says over the intercom. "We are entering slip-space soon. All nonessential crew prepare for cryo."

"That means we have the ship to ourselves." I inform the ponies.

* * *

"OK ponies, this is the forge room." I tell the, as we all enter the holoprojection room. Inside are the other two Spartans on this ship. One of them has black armor with green accents and the other has red armor with white accents.

"So these are the friends you made? They don't look all that dangerous Rex." The one in the black armor comments to me.

"Trust me Vic, they petrified the entire covvie force in the city I was in."

"Impressive." The red one compliments.

"You got that right Alex."

"Um, Rex." The yellow pegasus from before says to me. "What exactly are we going to be doing in here?"

"Well, um, what's your name?" I ask her.

"Fluttershy."

"Well Fluttershy, we are going to be training for the upcoming battle by testing what your load-out will end up being and how well you all work with squad tactics and in free for all." I answer her.

"Praxus, how long until we exit slip-space?" Vic asks the AI.

"You have approximately 10 days until slip-space exit." The AI replies.

"Well then we had better get started. Vic, you're our resident jack of all trades, how about you start things off."

"With pleasure. I am going to have all of you in a squad match against Rex and Alex in the War Games room. While that is going on, I am going to individually test you with various weapons and armor abilities, while you are in simulated armor based on what you will be wearing in battle. When it is all done, we three Spartans will determine which of you 12 is the most combat efficient and which ones of you are best suited for support of medical. Remember, there is no pain in the War Games room so don't hold back, any of you." He orders. "I'll start with you, big red." He says to Sanguine. I then lead the ponies to the War Games room, which is identical to the Forge room.

"Give us a good map for a 2 on 11 squad match that gives the team of 2 the advantage." I tell Praxus.

"Very well." He replies and the room shimmers and turns into a decent sized outdoor area I recognize as the Spire map. On one side is a giant covenant shield spire and the rest of the area is full of ridges and large stones, as well as some UNSC mini-bases.

"Ponies, your objective will be to kill us." I tell them, pointing at Alex and myself. "We are going to be based in that spire." I inform them, pointing at the covenant spire. "You will have to take the spire in order to win, because Alex and I will continuously re-spawn in the spire until that happens. Good luck." I finish. "Praxus, give them their armor."

"Will do." He replies. Seconds later, all of the ponies have armor that looks like Spartan armor, but designed for the ponies, special coverings for the pegasus wings and a ridge on the helmets of the unicorns for their horns.

"Let the games begin." I tell them.

* * *

The games went rather well for the ponies first time. They managed to get into the spire and they almost got it to, but then Vic came in and called the match because he had finished the evaluation.

"OK ponies. With the evaluations done, I can assign you to what you seem to work best with. Applejack, Sanguine, and Jason. You three are going in as tanks, since you seem to use ranged weapons never. Your load-outs are going to be a shotgun as your only weapon and you will have the Armor Lock ability. Pinkie and all of you pegasi except for Silent and Fluttershy are going to be scouts and blitz fighters. You are getting standard battle rifles and whatever melee weapons you want, to an extent. You will also have the Rocket Packs so you can get that extra burst of speed should you need it. All of you unicorns are getting no weapons since your magic is plenty lethal. You will however be able to use drop shields that block any and all projectiles for a time. Silent, you are getting the Active Camo and a Sniper Rifle primary and Magnum secondary. Fluttershy, you are getting the drop shield and a magnum, along with medical supplies. I believe that covers everything."

"I believe you are correct on that one. Now then, how about we begin training you to work as a squad. I'll head this one." I tell them. "This one is going to be a objective elimination mission. Praxus, set up a map with a decent amount of covvies and a covvie base with AA guns." The AI changes the map from Spire to one that is reminiscent of one of the farming planets, with us on the outskirts of a city, in the crop fields. The ponies are armored up again, this time with their load-outs equipped. I finally get to notice their individual armors since I am not trying to kill them in the War Games. Twilights armor is lavender with dark purple accents, and a pink visor. Applejacks armor is a rust color with peach accents and a brown visor. Pinkies armor is, well, pink with magenta accents with a pink visor. Fluttershy's is yellow with pink accents, with a white visor. Rainbow Dash's armor is cyan with white accents, and a visor that changed color with the light. Rarity's armor is white with purple accents, and a purple visor. They all also have have the cut gem from their Element of Harmony embedded in the chest piece of their armor.

"So, what's the plan?" Rainbow Dash asks me, flying in her armor, somehow.

"Well, first, I am going to split you into squads. Except for you Silent, you are going to be with me. Rainbow Dash, I want you to pick 3 other scouts to survey the enemies and find weak points. Remain undetected if you can. Unicorns, I want you to take the earth ponies, the rest of the scouts, and Fluttershy and you will be the bulk of the attack force. Remember, use your radar and I will keep in radio contact at all times. There are also no respawns in this practice, so consider it real."

"Yes sir." They all reply.

"That's what I like to hear. Rainbow Dash, you take squad alpha and scout them out. Squad beta, wait for my signal, then charge. Silent, come with me." I order before moving towards the outskirts of the city, the pegasi flying past Silent and me. I get up to the side of a building with a door facing the fields. A quick check of my radar says the building is clear, and I open the door and climb up to the top. When I get there, Silent is waiting for me.

"What took you so long boss?" Silent asks.

"Can't fly." I reply. "Now then, see that ledge, we are going to set up to snipe from there once alpha marks the enemy forces. Don't take out anything until I say."

"Roger."

"Good." I reply. We wait a few minutes and then I get the radio from Rainbow Dash.

"OK boss, the covvies as you call them are fortified in the skyscraper in the center of the city, as well as what looks like the train stations in the city. We saw Elites, Jackles, Grunts, and a dozen monstrosities covered in blue armor."

"Damn, Praxus gave us Hunters." I say under my breath. "Thank you Rainbow Dash. All ponies listen up. If you see a large orange creature with blue armor and a massive arm cannon, retreat immediately. If you are trapped, their weak is anything orange, especially their backs."

"Roger." I hear from the squads. "Now then, Midnight, mark the train stations for everyone."

"No problem bossman." He replies. Shortly after, 4 red triangle appear on my visor, indicating the 4 train stations.

"Good thing this loadout comes with a short range jetpack." I say to myself. "Come on Silent, we're going building hopping." I tell the pegasus before moving back along the roof, then running to the edge and jumping, when I start to fall, I activate my jetpack, which carries me up another story to the roof of the next building. Silent simply flies up to meet me. A few more jumps later and I can see the first train station, an above ground monorail station that leads to the other 3 and the tower in the center.

"So, what's the sniping priority." Silent asks me.

"Elites first, then Jackles, then Grunts." I reply. "Beta are you in position?" I ask them.

"We are in position and ready to engage." I hear Twilight reply.

"Roger that. When the first covvie falls, you are clear to engage."

"Can I shoot em boss?" Silent asks me.

"Just let me get ready." I reply. I crouch down at one of the ledges with my DMR, enter the scope, find an Elite, target the head, and fire, killing it. "Yes, you can begin shooting them down." I reply as I take down another. I line up the scope with another Elite, but before I can snipe it, a beam of lavender energy kills it. Shortly after, a person sized rock sweeps away a dozen Grunts.

"HERE COMES TOM!" I hear Rarity shout. I exit my scope and look in awe at what just happened.

"Rarity is a dress maker back in Equestria, but her magic is specified to gems and precision." Silent informs me before he takes out two Elites with one sniper round.

"Damn." Is once again my only response to the ponies lethality.

"GERONIMO!" I hear Rainbow Dash shout as she divebombs the covvies in the train station. I see the other ponies vacating the area and entering a building nearby. Moments later, there is a huge flash of light and when it dies down, a huge cloud of rainbow smoke like a mushroom cloud is emanating from the train station.

"Rainbow Dash, what did you do?" I ask her.

"Sonic Rainboom. I break the speed of sound and make a rainbow at the same time. This was a low altitude one." She replies, incredibly nonchalant.

"Well warn me next time." I reply.

"Will do boss. What's next?"

"We go to the remaining train stations, eliminate the covvie threat there, and then take the building in the center."


	4. Finishing the Training

"You saw that, right Vic?" I ask, since he was probably observing with Alex.

"Yeah." He replies. "The covvies will never see that coming."

"Well, back to training." I finish. "Squad alpha, head over to station 2, we will be shortly behind. Keep them occupied. Beta, I am joining you for this attack."

"Roger that." Applejack replies.

"Silent, you are on your own for this attack. Take out as many covvies as you can. If there are any snipers, they take first priority."

"Noted." He replies. I jump off the roof and use my jet-pack to land softly. I join with beta squad and get side by side with some of the ponies I had yet to meet. This one was a pegasus, low flying, in purple armor with black accents and a grey visor.

"So what's your name?" I ask.

"Violet Storm." She replies.

"Why did you decide to join up with the rest of us?" I ask her, trying to fulfill my curiosity.

"Well, Rose told us all how you saved her from the other alien. I also saw what they had done to other ponies when I flew to the castle, and couldn't stand it. I had to do something, so I asked to come with you."

"Good to know." I tell her. After a few more minutes, we achieve visual of the second train station. "Alpha, what's up there?"

"Four of those monstrosities you told us about, and a few dozen of the Grunts."

"Fuck." I say under my breath. "Alpha, get out of there. Sanguine, Applejack, you're with me. Jason, I need your shotgun for this one."

"Sir." He replies, hoofing me his shotgun. I give him my DMR in return.

"Let's go!" I order. Applejack and Sanguine shortly behind me.

"What do we do?" Sanguine asks me. I turn to him in his crimson armor with orange accents and black visor.

"Get behind the Hunters, and blast their backs." I reply. "Stay behind them and watch out for their shields. They use them to bash people in. I've seen it."

"So ah take it that they are dangerous?" Applejack asks.

"Very much so. There used to be thousands of Spartans like me, now there are only four. You've already met 3 of them, and soon enough, you may meet the fourth." I tell them, closing in on the Grunt infested area. "The Hunters took out most of us, as did the Elites. I managed to kill my fair share of Hunters thanks to my natural agility." I inform them as we reach the area. The Grunts are basically creating a wall in front of the Hunters, so I jump over it with the help of my jet-pack. On the other side of them are the 4 Hunters, waiting for me. All four of them charge their cannons and aim at me. I wait for them to fire before sprinting to the right, behind one of them. I take my shotgun, place it against the soft orange flesh of theirs and pull the trigger. It staggers forward and then its head armor flies off as it falls to the ground. When it hits the ground, I see Applejack, back facing me and legs in the air.

"Years of applebucking." She replies. Sanguine, shortly after, kicks one of the other Hunters shields so hard that it breaks off. I take this opportunity to jump in front of that Hunter, put my shotgun in its face, and pull the trigger. Two down and two to go, except another falls after two loud bangs.

"Silent?" I ask, moving to the last Hunter

"Yes?"

"That was you right?"

"Yes."

"Impressive." I compliment before taking one of my grenades, and shoving it in the last Hunters cannon. I leap up, putting my legs on its shield, and kick off, doing a back flip as the grenade explodes, destroying its cannon, and its arm, and killing it. Minutes later, the grunts are down and the station, clear. I return to Jason and give him his shotgun back and take my DMR back.

"Let me guess." Rainbow Dash starts. "Station 3?"

"Yes, but this time, I am going with you. I want to see how you act and if you manage to miss anything important." I reply.

"Try and keep up." She replies before taking off towards the waypoint marking the station. Pinkie Pie and the other 2 pegasi she chose shortly behind her. I sprint off in the direction they were headed. 10 minutes later, we're there. I head up to a nearby building and scout out the station on the roof. The pegasi are scouting it by air. Rainbow Dashes armor blending in perfectly with the sky, and one of the others, contrasting it exactly with armor that is green with dark green accents. That pony is however far enough away to look like a large bird. I continue observing the area until they get back.

"So what did you see?" I ask them.

"Well, I saw another pair of those Hunters you were talking about." The green one says.

"Good." I tell her. "What else?"

"Well, there were some of those Elites with something long and glowing in their hands." Rainbow Dash informs me.

"Good. Those energy swords are basically instant kills."

"Well," A brown armored pegasus with yellow accents and a brown visor begins. "I saw some of the Grunts riding in some sort of small vehicle that seemed to be floating."

"Those are called Ghosts." I tell her. "They are fast, deadly, and fun to drive."

"I saw some Jackles in nearby buildings, looking out the windows." Pinkie Pie tells me.

"Snipers, it's good to find them fast, cause they are deadly. Now here's what you missed. In the distance. You see those birds that seem to be gliding?" I ask them, pointing out to the side of the skyscraper in the middle of the city. They all nod when they see it. "Those are Banshees. They are basically flying ghosts with rocket launchers. There was some other, minor stuff, that can be compensated for. Basically, whenever you finish scouting the area, look to the skies. It's where they get all of their reinforcements."

"Thanks for the tips." Rainbow replies.

"No prob. Pinkie, point out the snipers to Silent. Beta, you are free to engage, but be warned about Elites with swords, a pair of Hunters, and incoming enemy aerial support. Alpha, I want you to take out the Banshees. LET'S MOVE!" I order, before setting up to snipe at the covvies. My DMR ready, I enter the scope and find a sword, and fire off half a clip into its head. 'Damn shields.' I find another and repeat the process. I reload in time to see both Hunters fall, thanks to Sanguine and Applejack. I decide to join the main battle, so I jump down, landing nice thanks to my jet-pack once again. I look for a Ghost and find one hurtling towards Rose. I sprint in an intercept path and jump on to it. I land on the back of it, jump up with my hand still on the Ghost, swing down, and kick the Grunt driving in the head, knocking it out of the driver seat and killing it. I swing the Ghost around, looking for another one of the swords. I see one sneaking up on another pegasi so I kick in the boost and splatter his ass. I remember the Banshees and boost to a place where I can see the sky. I see Rainbow Dash and the other two pegasus scouts flying around the Banshees like gnats. Rainbow Dash flies behind one and, by the looks of it, yanks the Elite flying it out and she jumps in.

"How do you fly this thing?" She asks.

"We'll get to that later, just help with the others or get back here."

"On my way." She replies, and the Banshee begins to fall to the ground.

* * *

"OK team, time for cqc." I tell the ponies, now that we cleared the train stations and are outside the tower.

"Pardon?" Applejack asks.

"Close quarters combat." I reply. "Scouts, your speed will not be as helpful in escape, but it can be useful for confusing the covvies if you don't stop moving. At this point, we are one squad. Now, I am sure that all of you have noticed a four letter and number sign above everyone's head. That is a call-sign. Only your allies will have them, so it helps a lot."

"Well, what are we doing standing around here for?" Rainbow Dash asks.

"Well, for one, my radar shows red dots all over the inside of the building. Twilight, I've seen your magic, do you think you could thin the crowds in there?"

"Sure." She replies, and then I can see her crest on her head begin to glow a little. After a few moments, the glowing dies down. "It should be clear." She informs me, out of breath by the sound of her voice.

"Thanks. Radar says all clear. Let's move." I say, leading the ponies into the building lobby. Inside are a bunch of oranges in varying size. I am curious, but don't say anything, because I kind of don't want to know. I go over to the elevator and and hit the up button. It starts up. "Looks like the elevator is working. Load in." I order. They all file in, luckily it's a wide elevator. I get in after them and hit the button for the top floor. The elevator starts to rise and plays background music that is rather boring. After a few awkward minutes, we reach the top. "Get ready." I tell them, lifting my DMR. The doors open, and there are a pair of Elites standing guard. I quickly motion for them to be quite and sneak up behind one. I pull out my 6 inch combat knife, grab the Elites shoulder, and pull it to the ground. When it hits, I plunge my knife into its head, killing it. The other Elite begins shooting at me with a plasma recycler, but Sanguine kicks it in the back, launching it at me. I pull my knife out of the dead Elite just in time for me to be able to stab it through the head of the second. I pull my knife out and let the body fall to the floor. I switch my Magnum for the plasma recycler, and it has a 95 percent charge left.

"So now what do we do?" Pinkie Pie asks.

"Midnight?" I ask my AI.

"Let's see here." He starts. "Intel says you have to get to the roof for evac so the tower can be detonated. Apparently, this tower is an ONI center, and the humans that were here before the covvies set charges. I can trigger them remotely so get to the roof and wait for a Pelican."

"Waypoint?"

"Marked." He replies as a red triangle appears on a doorway not to far ahead of us.

"Silent, use your camo to see if there are any covvies waiting for us." I order. He nods and turns invisible, sneaking into the room ahead. He comes back a minute later, and becomes visible again.

"Clear." He informs me.

"Let's move." I order. We go through the room ahead, up some stairs at the end, at end up at the roof. On the roof is a squad of Brutes, huge ape-like beasts that I have not seen much of. One of them has a hammer. "Watch the hammer, it's very annoying. They are also juggernauts to be careful." I tell the ponies. At that same moment, one of them notices us and charges. I see a red glow out the corner of my vision and look to see Rose's horn crest glowing. The plants decorating the roof turn red and in seconds, a wall of thorns is between the Brutes and us.

"Plant magic has been what I am good at since I was young. Never thought I would have to use it like this though." She says quietly.

"Trust me, none of us thought we would be in a galactic war with aliens." I reply to her.

"WRAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAGH!" The Brute shouts from the other side of the wall of ivy.

"Midnight, how long till evac?"

"5 minute eta."

"And how long till the Brutes break down the wall?"

"Approximately 60 seconds."

"Ok, we need a plan. Twilight." I start. "What kind of magic could you use to help stall?"

"Well, I could teleport them somewhere."

"Perfect. Do it with as many of them as you can, and as far from here as you can." I order. Her horn crest begins to glow a purple color and then with a loud snap, it stops. "Lower the vines Rose." She does and the Brutes are no longer on the roof with us. We wait out the rest of the time until the Pelican arrives to pick us up. It does and when we are a safe distance away, the whole building goes up in a ball of fire. The simulation ends and Vic and Alex enter the room.

"I must say, that was impressive." Vic compliments.

"I agree, and the magic." Alex agrees.

"Exiting Slip-Space in 48 hours. I would suggest you all get some rest." Praxus informs us.

"Agreed. You ponies worked hard. Time to rest up." Vic orders.

* * *

"Exiting Slip-Space in 3. 2. 1. Now." Praxus says as we return to normal space. Vic, Alex, and I are on the bridge with the ponies when we re-enter space where the distress signal of the Pillar of Autumn was sent.

"Detecting multiple covenant signatures." One of the soldiers on the bridge shouts. "We're surrounded."

"Captain, what's that?" I ask, pointing at a massive orbital satellite in the shape of a ring.

"I don't know Spartan. What I do know is that the Pillar is on that satellite. I want you three, your friends, and some ODSTs to go down there and find the AI. Master Chief was with the ship when it went down so find him as well. Assist him in any way possible. We'll hold the covvies here until you all get back."

"SIR YES SIR!" Vic, Alex, and I shout while saluting, then run off towards the Pelicans, ponies not far behind us.


End file.
